Bright Future

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Bright Future

2003

1h 32m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

71%

Tomatometer

21 Reviews

74%

Popcornmeter

2,500+ Ratings

Mamoru (Tadanobu Asano) and feckless, unstable Yuji (Jô Odagiri) are best friends who work together in a Japanese towel factory. But they're separated when, after lending Yuji a poisonous jellyfish, Mamoru is jailed for killing their boss (Takashi Sasano). Suddenly at loose ends, Yuji begins working for Mamoru's father, Shin-ichiro (Tatsuya Fuji), in his salvage shop. Meanwhile, the jellyfish escapes and begins reproducing in massive numbers within the sewers of the city.

Critics Consensus

Flawed yet alluring, Bright Future slowly draws the viewer into an enigmatic world of surreal imagery and entrancing ambiguity.

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Richard Porton

Chicago Reader

Sep 29, 2017

Alienated youth is one of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's favorite themes. Bright Future is an alternately comic and macabre portrait of a deranged friendship.

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John Hartl

Seattle Times

Jan 28, 2005

3/4

Gradually establishes a sense of foreboding that is hard to shake, though it's not without its darkly humorous moments.

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Ty Burr

Boston Globe

Jan 14, 2005

3/4

The movie has a curious and cumulative power.

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Diane Carson

KDHX (St. Louis)

Dec 30, 2020

[Director Kiyoshi Kurosawa] embeds astute social commentary in narrative details, as he does exceptionally well in "Bright Future".

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Dennis Schwartz

Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews

Sep 17, 2009

B

Kurosawa's weird look at the empty lives of modern youth is mysteriously eye-catching but nothing deeper.

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Christopher Null

Filmcritic.com

Mar 8, 2005

3/5

a genre that's starting to get overplayed

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Andrew S

@Malasita Jul 6, 2026

Very good film about a bleak future for the characters.

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S. C

@RT35273155 Oct 6, 2023

Not as good as you would expect but intriguing nonetheless with its symbolism. I liked the editing and some of the shots were really great. The actor playing the role of the father was pretty good. A few beautifully directed scenes there, for example the one in which the lead gets a job at the office. Intriguing watch that gets you thinking.

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Oct 18, 2021

Confusing at times, but ultimately thought provoking and rewarding.

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May 31, 2015

Kiyosho Kurosawa abandons the horror genre for and existentially reflex character study. Flawed but interesting.

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Oct 16, 2013

the movie contains a lot of analogies between concepts and objects such as the jellyfish was compared to the confined life of people. very low-key yet meticulously skillful film.

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Dec 31, 2012

Man is obsessed with jellyfish; jellyfish is faster-moving than film's pacing.

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Kiyoshi Kurosawa

Director

Joe Odagiri

Yuji Nimura

Tadanobu Asano

Mamoru Arita

Tatsuya Fuji

Shin-ichiro Arita

Takashi Sasano

Mr. Fujiwara

Marumi Shiraishi

Mrs. Fujiwara

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Synopsis

Mamoru (Tadanobu Asano) and feckless, unstable Yuji (Jô Odagiri) are best friends who work together in a Japanese towel factory. But they're separated when, after lending Yuji a poisonous jellyfish, Mamoru is jailed for killing their boss (Takashi Sasano). Suddenly at loose ends, Yuji begins working for Mamoru's father, Shin-ichiro (Tatsuya Fuji), in his salvage shop. Meanwhile, the jellyfish escapes and begins reproducing in massive numbers within the sewers of the city.

Director: Kiyoshi Kurosawa
Producer: Takashi Asai
Distributor: Palm Pictures
Production Co: Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation, Uplink Co., Digital Site Corporation, The Klockworx Co., Ltd.
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Japanese
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 18, 2003, Original
Release Date (DVD): Mar 8, 2005
Box Office (Gross USA): $4.8K
Runtime: 1h 32m

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